Bandai Takes Snap-Kits Into Hyperdrive with New STAR WARS Line

Share:

If you’re a Star Wars collector, even casually, you’ve probably put together a plastic toy spaceship at some point—but not like this. In its new line of miniature kits, Bandai is not only upping the ante on quality, but also of ease. The company is aiming for a level of detail that matches prop-replica levels of accuracy, while still making it possible for the average consumer with non-elflike fingers to snap the kit together with relative ease. The first North American release will be a two-pack of Rogue One X-Wings, one in 1/72 scale and the other in 1/144 scale. For those who don’t speak nerd scale on toys, here’s how that breaks down: 1:1 scale would be a six-foot tall human action figure, approximately, so 1/72 scale means a human pilot would be an inch tall, while 1/144 would make them half an inch.

Bandai has made a video, above, that showcases the amazing lengths they go to to make these collector friendly. The sculpting is so intricate that it includes details you won’t even see in the final assembled product but can enjoy while you’re building. The design is such that it is made to hide the marks where each part was originally attached to the frame. And depending on how fancy you like your stickers, there are options: each vehicle comes with both high-end waterslide decals and regular labels that don’t require tweezers and a soaking bowl.

Our gallery below showcases some of the attention to detail in the first wave of product, which includes an A-Wing, TIE Interceptor, and Poe’s black X-Wing—particularly cool are the bases that replicate Death Star panels, and the optional laser blast effect pieces. Many more vehicles are planned, including a Millennium Falcon and potentially a Star Destroyer, and there’ll be figure kits as well for the likes of Darth Vader, Kylo Ren, and a shiny vac-metallized Threepio (one of these things is not like the other!). So far they’re all from the Luke Skywalker era, but given the way they get the metallic parts to look on our favorite protocol droid, it would be nice to someday finally get a properly shiny replica of Queen Amidala’s various royal spaceships from the prequels.

Are you ready to build an armada? What would you like to see Bandai tackle next? Stay on target and leave your thoughts in comments.